Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1887-12-09
Great Painters.

Several men were sitting in a store at
Jameson's tan yard talking OF the pie
lures which they had seen in the "arr
gallery of country fair.
Yes, looked putty WELL" said an old
fellow. "but they amt what | call fine
paintin'. Boys, you knOwed Andy
Summers?"
Yes"
oval, ANDY WAS painter. One day
he painted the pictur' of an overcoat, an
it was so nachu that his daddy put Il
on an had wore il sometime before he
found out it was pictur'."
Yes" rejoined n fellow named
Smith, II have heard OF that pictur'.
Andy was putty good cub painter.
thar amt no mistake about that, but
when you want to get some right good
work done you've got To go To feller
that has larned the trade sho' 'nuf.
Now. Miles Stokes was what | called a
number one painter. You all know d
Miles-lived on the old Asford place the
wear after the war. One time Miles
painted the pictur' of fiddle, and I'll
hanged if feller didn't take to u
dance and play on il all night. Never
heard such music in my life. Made IL
fairly talk, the feller did. That was
paintin' sho' 'nuff.'
THAT was mighty fine pictur.' y
said old Parson Gates, the circuit rider.
miles could have done suthin' at paint
in ef lie had kept on tryin', but he
peered to lose his grip arter Bob Hadley
come around. Hadley was fine painter.
OF course | ain't no art critic, nor moth
it, of that sort, aud don't pretend 10 put
my judgment any higher than you can
reach, but somehow he always struck
me as bein' pow'ful nachul painter.
One night thar WAS possul OF us over
at old Simmons house an we got after
Bob TO paint us II pictur'. lie said he
didn't feel like painlin' an KEEP on max
in' excuses till ole Simmons went out
an fetched in a bucket of paint an u
bresh an tole Bod that he jest must
paint some sort of pictur', whuther or
no. Wall, Bob he tuck up the bresh
an begunter slash it aronn' ill the fust
thing we knowed'd he had dun painted
the pictur' of jug. Ii wuz jest as
nachul as any jug | ever seed, an when
| tuck il up and sOrter shuck ii | heard
suthin' slosh. turned IL up, | did, an
hanged cf thar wasn't whisky in IT,"
"Sho nuff whisky"
TELL you how sho' nun 1t was. We
let in to drnkin' it an ii want long I'LL
we was all drunk"
cts yOre time now, Uncle Buck,
cried young fellow, sIappins an old
man on the back.
Il aiu't no han to exaggerate, boys"
Uncle Buck replied. ITO me thar amt
no fun in an impossible le."'
"Then what you air going to tell us
is the truth, eh?'
"Yes. an I'll bet my hoss agn yourn."
"Well, wait till I've heard your story"
"All right" Uncle Buck continued.
81 was in Bill Rickey's store some time
ago. Bill, you know, while he don't
make no prelence, Is considerable of an
artist. Wall, jest TO amuse me or him
self, he painted a niger, an that mig
ger went out doors, chopped some wood
brought il into the house an made as
good fire as you ever saw"
"UDcle Buck, I'll take the bet"
"All right. Yander's John Higgins,
out yander. Call him in"
When Higgins came in aud Uncle
Buck asked: "Higgirs, want you at
Rickey's store one day last week."
"Yes."
"Seed me thar"
eyes"
Anybody else thar?'
"Yes, Niger"
"What did Hickey do to himF'
"Snatched upa bresh aud painted
him, jest for fun"
"What did the Niger DO shortly
afterwards" 2"
Chopped some wood an made fire."
"Gabe, said Uncle Buck, "go fetch
that horse round here"
"0h, 10, you said he painted the pic
tur' of niger"
"No, didn't. Did boysY"
"No, said he PARTED n niger" some
one replied, and the boys agreed that
those were his exact words.
That's the only hos' I've got, Uncle
Buck"
KANT help IL; fetch him"
Gabe brought the horse around and
4 IL